Aight, give me your programming language chain of development.
Use a prefix, - for just a little, + for a whole lot, and you can repeat.
For myself, the kind of reply I'm looking for, my own programming language chain, in the next post.
Post
Aight, give me your programming language chain of development.
Use a prefix, - for just a little, + for a whole lot, and you can repeat.
For myself, the kind of reply I'm looking for, my own programming language chain, in the next post.
@GeePawHill
+BASIC
-TMS9900 assembler
-Forth
-Cobol
+Fortran
+C
-Perl
+C++
+Java
+python
@GeePawHill For work, I came up with the following list. I've also toyed briefly with some others, but not seriously enough to add them to the list.
Also, this list is not strictly chronological. There's too many loopbacks to do that.
8085
--Basic
microcode (in binary, running a custom processor)
6800 family (numerous variants)
Z80
8031
Pascal
X86
-68000 family
++C
-C++
IDL (Interactive Data Language)
-Shell (various)
Java
--Perl
-Javascript
-Ruby
- BASIC
- Pascal
- C / C++
+ dBase/ foxbase
+ Visual FoxPro, Visual Basic
++ C#
- Java
++ Ruby
++ JavaScript
++ HTML/Css
- Python
+ Go
I recently wrote a post about my career trajectory (https://hectorcorrea.com/blog/2026-01-12/career-in-software-development) and one of the things I highlighted for newcomers was the discrepancy in the tech stack at school vs tech stack at work and that in the long run it does not matter that much because our tech stack will eventually evolve no matter where we start.
@GeePawHill
++ BASIC (HP 2100 & Apple dialects)
+ Pascal
+ Custom BASIC/Pascal "blend")
++ C
-- RPG
+ C++
- COBOL (-- JCL/CICS)
- Prolog
++ Java (longest 'in anger')
+ Groovy
+ C#
- Powershell
- Scala
- Golang
- - Kotlin
+ Python
-- Bash
- JS (TS)
Those represent use within my work (though not always for end-product; and I've probably forgotten some). [I've a particular personal interest in languages, so I've also learned the basics of many others along the way.]
-BASIC (first programming experience, mostly graphics)
-Pascal (Turbo, educational at uni)
-C (fucking nightmare, memory overwrites all over the place)
++Java
+Visual Basic (and the whole COM+ shebang 😬 )
-Visual Foxpro 😬
++Python
+C# (hated the capitalised variables, and MS fucked up the OSS tooling in the early days)
++JavaScript/TypeScript
-C++ (wow, this language became modern 😳 )
++shell 🙈 (choose your shell, don't call it a script, it is code!)
played with Clojure
1/2
Started as scientist programmer, then paid developer/tech Architect and now UX Designer/Architect. I’ve always taken a “toolbox approach” to digital dev tools-
1. Know at least 2 tools that do the same job, pick your preferred & master it.
2. Check out new variants & update “toolbox” accordingly.
3. Regularly practice tasks, methods & techniques.
4. Regularly share, explain and teach tasks, methods & techniques.
5. Pick the right tool for the job, not default to your preferred.
@GeePawHill
2/2
-VAX assemblers
+68K assembler
+++MS DOS 2-6
+Pascal>Delphi>Modula-2
-Fortran 77(Fourier transform-FT)
++QBASIC: FT 3D render
+C(++)
+++VB3-6
++OS script: bash
+++++Markdown
+++TCL
-PHP
+++HTML 4-5, XML, XSL, SMIL, SVG
+++CSS 1-3
++JavaScript (Rhino eng.) & prototype-based like Lua
++++Java J2EE 1.2-9
++SQL 1999-2003
-Kotlin
-Python (UI BFF & Data science) alt. PHP
++++JavaScript (v8/NodeJs engine)
-Ruby:web app prototypes alt. PHP & Python
+++infrastructureAsCode & other DSLs
@dahukanna Good strategy, and an impressive list.
@GeePawHill
+Basic (as teenager)
+Pascal (Turbo, even bought version 6 as a teenager)
-C
-x86 ASM (at one point, tried to implement "CLS" command or something)
+Java (since 1.0, at university and professional)
-C++ (thesis at university)
-Javascript (web stuff)
-Emacs lisp
-Clojure
-Scala (took 2 MOOCs)
I remember reading a book about OO programming in the 90s that was about message passing
- BASIC (games, fractal generator in high school)
+ C (1st year uni)
+ 8086 assembler (alt.comp.virus baby)
- Lisp
- 68000+ assembler
- C++
- Turing(!!)
+ Java
- Perl
+ C++
+ VisualBasic
+ Python
- JScript(!!)
+ PHP
+ Ruby
+ C++
- (proprietary "C"s and assemblers for various microcontrollers)
+ C# + VB.NET
+ JavaScript/TypeScript
- Objective-C
+ C++
- CLisp
- Rust
- Go
- Elixir
C++ has just been a constant throughout. I can't seem to escape it.
+ BASIC (on TOPS-20, Apple II, TRS-80, Microsoft, CBASIC, BASIC PLUS (PDP/11), Rexon & BASIC 4, Data Basic (on Pick), VBA, etm.)
+ COBOL ('68 & '85)
- PL/I
- RPG
- JCL
+ Assembly (6502, 8080, Z80, 8086, 68k, IBM 360)
+ dBASE
+ Transact SQL (Sybase/SQL Server)
+ PL/SQL (Oracle)
+ Pascal
+ FORTRAN
- Forth (& wanted more)
- Smalltalk
+ OWL (EDS R&D language more extreme than Smalltalk)
+ EDS R&D CASE tool graphical language
+ Java
+ Gosu (is like Java)
+ Guidewire Rate Routines
…
@GeePawHill
-BASIC
-PHP
+C++
-zOS assembly
-COBOL
-Java
+C#
+Java (starting here but never stopped)
+Js
-Groovy
-Scala
+Kotlin
@GeePawHill
- FORTRAN IV
+ BASIC
+ C
- PARADOX PAL
- Toolbook
+ VBA
- Perl
+ C++
- Python
@GeePawHill
applesoft BASIC
6502 assembly
z80 assembly
++pascal
++x86 assembly
-logo
visual BASIC
++c
++c++
sh/ksh/bash
--SQL
--SPARC assembly
ogl arb_program
++ogl GLSL
+nv Cg
-powerpc assembly
-lisp
-mips32 assembly
armv6 assembly
+armv7 assembly
-python
ocl c
-php
++armv8 assembly
cuda c++
--nv ptx
LLVM IR
obj-c
68000 assembly
thumb/t2 assembly
-metal c++
-perl
--zig
* The misc gpgpu c-likes, though employing shared c/c++ syntax, require a different SPMD mindset and come with their quirks.
@GeePawHill
Roughly, assume at best -+- throughout, order approximate
FORTRAN II (ca 1961)
IBM 704, 7090, 7094
-- APL
-- LISP
-- SLIP
-- IPL-V
--- Jovial
DEC PDP-1
SDS 940
PASCAL (dialect)
C, C++
BASIC
6502
Forth
XEROX SIGMA 7 / 9
Smalltalk
-- Self
Ruby
--- Haskell
--- Elixer
--- J (kind of like APL?)
Lua
Python
-- Kotlin
-- Java
--JavaScript
-- PERL
I don't claim to have ever been really good at any of them, but I might have been close sometimes.
@GeePawHill
Forgot:
LOGO
Simscript
SNOBOL
Commercial Translator (COBOL precursor)
Oh C#, wrote a whole book about it. No one read it.
Have toyed with Swift. Took an Objective C class from Brad Cox.
Doubtless more will come to mind.
@RonJeffries Helluva long list.
@GeePawHill helluva old guy
@GeePawHill My list is a bit varied. I’m sure I’ve forgotten some, and I’ve skipped those I’ve just toyed a bit with.
+C64 BASIC
-Amiga BASIC
+AMOS BASIC
+ARexx
-Amiga E
+Pascal
-PLC
++JavaScript
-C/C++
-Visual Basic
-Delphi
-Lisp
-Ada
+Java
++Perl
-Tcl
-VimScript
+VBScript
+SQL
++PHP
-BASH
-sed
-Prolog
-Datalog
-Lua
+Python
++Ruby
-Raku
-AppleScript
-Objective C
-C64 Assembly
-Clojure
+Rust
@ollej Wide variety of dynamic vs static.
@GeePawHill -
-Fortran
+CDP1802 machine language
-Cobol
+Basic
+Z-80 assembler
-Lisp
+Forth
+C
+x86 assembler
-6502 assembler
+C++
+Lisp
-Java
-VB6
+Ruby
-Python
-Clojure